Asiatam Pz 4- Panzer pain
Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 12:51 am
I've set aside my Firefly project for a while, and finally yielded to the temptation of building a Panzer 4. Yep..despite the pitfalls,niggles, and frustrations outlined in previous posts by such Panzer 4 illuminati or aficionados, as Jarndice, Arnie DK, Philipat to mention but a few.. I could hold out no longer. This is likely to be a long, expletive ridden build (judging by my initial impressions of the Asiatam chassis) but, of course, you won't hear the 'unprintable' descriptors that will accompany it.
First impressions of the Asiatam metal chassis kit? Well, it's really solid- in fact it's built like a...er..er..tank! That's a plus point. Also, having just compared some of the mouldings and cast parts with real counterparts, I'd say that the detailing is pretty good. The good impression faded to grey, though, when I found that the body wasn't straight, and closer examination with a metal rule showed that on side was slightly convex at the front. In turn, this could mean that the wheels and return rollers would be out of alignment...leading to a host of future horrors: pulling to one side, for example or 'crabbing' like an old repaired mini that had a heavy shunt. A hefty squeeze in my metalworking vice bucked its ideas up a bit..
The instructions arrived on a CD, and I duly printed them out. This was probably a waste of premium inkjet paper and ink, since the illustrations created more questions than they answered.
Thus, following advice from one of Shaun's posts, I downloaded the Tamiya Pz4 instructions, and suddenly it was as if a veil had been lifted! (no, I'm not religious..) Fiat Lux, boys!. Anyway, they helped give a clearer idea of where things should go, and how they should get there.
The Asiatam kit comes with a lot of wee plastic baggies full of disparate metal parts. Even when I found out where bits should go, it was often a b**ger of a job persuading then to go there, without recourse to drills, files,
emery cloth, hysterical threats.. and my new trusty pin vice...oh, and with super glue here and there. In particular, the supplied suspension system (marked 'Taigen' in faded ink) proved spectacularly obstinate. Annoyingly, some suspension arms are too slack, and will need shims or washers, otherwise the wheels will wander wonkily, as the tracks pass over them. That could be very noisy . In addition, two of the retaining clips on the leaf suspension fell apart for no discernible reason, and the others slide around disconcertingly. I can only guess what will happen the first time they're put under real stress 
Boing.. Boing... BANG 
Ohh well..we'll need to improve these bits before letting them loose on the unsuspecting world! The other fittings need cosmetic, and time consuming detailed attention. It's easy to see why these are sold as kits, and not pre-assembled in some depressing low-paid sweatshop...
Here's what the initial package looked like when dumped on my table:
Then, after many hours and satanic invocations, stage one Panzer on the wall in my garden...with calming sea loch in the background! 
It'll be a while before I add any updates to the build, as I've yet to decide what model it will be...but I favour an F2 or later. But at least it will be paid for by the money accumulating in my swearbox 
First impressions of the Asiatam metal chassis kit? Well, it's really solid- in fact it's built like a...er..er..tank! That's a plus point. Also, having just compared some of the mouldings and cast parts with real counterparts, I'd say that the detailing is pretty good. The good impression faded to grey, though, when I found that the body wasn't straight, and closer examination with a metal rule showed that on side was slightly convex at the front. In turn, this could mean that the wheels and return rollers would be out of alignment...leading to a host of future horrors: pulling to one side, for example or 'crabbing' like an old repaired mini that had a heavy shunt. A hefty squeeze in my metalworking vice bucked its ideas up a bit..
The instructions arrived on a CD, and I duly printed them out. This was probably a waste of premium inkjet paper and ink, since the illustrations created more questions than they answered.
Thus, following advice from one of Shaun's posts, I downloaded the Tamiya Pz4 instructions, and suddenly it was as if a veil had been lifted! (no, I'm not religious..) Fiat Lux, boys!. Anyway, they helped give a clearer idea of where things should go, and how they should get there.The Asiatam kit comes with a lot of wee plastic baggies full of disparate metal parts. Even when I found out where bits should go, it was often a b**ger of a job persuading then to go there, without recourse to drills, files,
emery cloth, hysterical threats.. and my new trusty pin vice...oh, and with super glue here and there. In particular, the supplied suspension system (marked 'Taigen' in faded ink) proved spectacularly obstinate. Annoyingly, some suspension arms are too slack, and will need shims or washers, otherwise the wheels will wander wonkily, as the tracks pass over them. That could be very noisy
. In addition, two of the retaining clips on the leaf suspension fell apart for no discernible reason, and the others slide around disconcertingly. I can only guess what will happen the first time they're put under real stress Boing.. Boing... BANG Ohh well..we'll need to improve these bits before letting them loose on the unsuspecting world! The other fittings need cosmetic, and time consuming detailed attention. It's easy to see why these are sold as kits, and not pre-assembled in some depressing low-paid sweatshop...Here's what the initial package looked like when dumped on my table:
- Pandora's Panzer Box..opened up
- Highland pesky Panzer 4
Overall, then, the Taigen leaf units supplied look fairly impressive- but I fear they'll lack any kind of bounce absorption potential. I seem to recall a post involving "he who should not be named' exploring that theme...a wee while ago, where an alternative kinked second (shorter) spring was mooted as a solution, and then shown undergoing impressive trials on Youtube. Nonetheless, the Taigen setup is all appearance and little substance...'all marf and no trousers' as cockneys are inclined to say in such instances 
...
and that despite the fact that I've bought a few bits fairly recently from them (they also supplied the Clark TK22 I have in my Tiger). That's probably the best option, and will help me avoid the pillaging and despoiling of an rctank.de model... I'll also try the Loctite option for binding the errant spring leaf fastenings, although I shall still have to fabricate a brace of replacements..
I've ordered the F2 upper hull from HLP.de, together with some HL/Taigen compatible metal sprockets. Somehow, a cold spectre passed over me when I clicked on the sprockets...a sort of portent of doom. I'd just remembered reading about difficulties fitting tracks to them; but, like an intrepid (or addicted) model tanker..I clicked 'buy'/ einkaufen with steely determination